Acclaimed Visual Novel Clannad Gets Nintendo Switch Release

The Nintendo Switch’s library continues to become more and more diverse with each passing quarter. In addition, it’s proving that the physical frontier is not dead despite the naysayers. Otakus and physical collectors alike can both take comfort in knowing that one of the most popular visual novels around will be getting some love in the West courtesy of Limited Run Games(LRG).

.@sekaiproject's CLANNAD, one of the most successful visual novels of all time, gets its first physical release for home consoles in the West through our distribution line!

Clannad, one of Key’s defining titles, was originally released on April 28 of 2004 for Windows operating systems. It tells the story of high school slacker Tomoya Okazaki. Okazaki is a bored student who resents his studies as well as the town he’s stuck in. He eventually makes several acquaintances and aids them in resolving their complex personal issues throughout the course of gameplay.

Clannad’s success spawned numerous transitions into other media formats, including several anime series’ as well as a feature length film from Toei in 2007. It’s worth noting that this was the last project that director Osamu Dezaki (who also worked on the legendary Astro Boy series as animator and director) had a hand in before his passing in 2011. Sharing the same name as the game, the film is a reinterpretation of the plot with a sharper focus on lead character Nagisa Furukawa.

Clannad eventually made its way onto the North American Eshop on July 4 of 2019 (coincidentally the same day the game launched physically in Japan), leading us up to LRG’s recent announcement that it will be wrapping the visual novel up in a one-of-a-kind package for western fans.

Anime Pad: What was it like working with Sekai Games to bring this beloved visual novel to the Switch in physical form for a western audience?

Doug: We have worked with Sekai Project on quite a few games now and are good friends with them. It was great to be able to work together again, especially on such an acclaimed visual novel!

Anime Pad: Did the current pandemic present any major challenges to production? If so, how did your team overcome them?

Doug: Thankfully a lot of work on this game was done before the pandemic so we were able to avoid any challenges.

Anime Pad: Is there any possibility that Clannad will get the LRG treatment on platforms other than the Switch in the future?

Doug: It’s always possible! Once Switch is done we can evaluate and see if a PS4 version would be good to do!

Anime Pad: Are there currently any plans to give other acclaimed visual novels the physical treatment?

Doug: We would love to work with Sekai Project on some more visual novels! We definitely love this genre and would love to continue to bring more of them out physically!

–Douglas Bogart Owner Limited Run Games

Par for the course, LRG will be offering both a standard edition and collector’s edition of the game that you’ll be able to preorder up until May 29. The collector’s edition is promised to be a 1:1 recreation of the first print release overseas, complete with the cartridge, visual guidebook and CD.